This will be the first meeting between the negotiators since the United States announced it would be providing Kyiv with Javelin anti-tank weapons.

Volker is not waiting nervously to see if Russia follows through on threats to escalate military action. Despite a brief respite this week, he said, "they've already done it."

He would like to see more diplomatic urgency directed toward the conflict and a willingness from the West to become more creative with sanctions on the Kremlin, should peacemaking efforts continue to fall flat.

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